Local grass-fed beef?...Well...

[Todd NC]

We recently purchased part of a grass-fed cow from a local farm, figuring we could help our local economy. Maybe some of you can give me your experiences, but for now - tonight's cook.

The libation of the evening. This is good beer.




Sautéed some mushrooms in butter.




Yellow squash with an initial glaze of honey, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and chili paste.




Mushrooms giving up their H2O.




Our local, grass-fed beef. Two small strip steaks and one small sirloin.




Squash after the 1st turn. Continued to baste and grill.




Shrooms ready for the plate.




Steaks on direct with the squash done and just hanging out.




And the plate. Served with foiled potatoes and shallots, with a lime juice, shallot, cilantro relish on the squash.




So I had high hopes for this beef, but it was some of the toughest steak I've ever had. Now I know prime is a small percentage of the overall beef market and I wasn't expecting prime quality, but this stuff was crazy tough. Has anyone else bought local beef and had the same experience? The meal was great if you ignore the texture of the beef.

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

Sorry you were disappointed with the meat Todd. It does look pretty lean. Grass fed beef has less fat than grain fed cows and fat equals flavor. The upside of that it’s supposedly healthier due to lower fat content. We don’t go crazy with beef so that’s why I go for the marbled meats and spend a lot of time in the prime section at Costco. You did support the local economy and that is commendable. Over all your meal looks delicious! Well done.

 

[Jeff Boudman]

I bought some local grass fed ribeyes and a tri-tip several years ago. They were way too lean for my taste.
I bought some heritage pork ribs awhile back and was disappointed at the lack of meat.

 

[Todd NC]

Sorry you were disappointed with the meat Todd. It does look pretty lean. Grass fed beef has less fat than grain fed cows and fat equals flavor. The upside of that it’s supposedly healthier due to lower fat content. We don’t go crazy with beef so that’s why I go for the marbled meats and spend a lot of time in the prime section at Costco. You did support the local economy and that is commendable. Over all your meal looks delicious! Well done.

I was expecting it to be more lean, but not quite this lean and there was a lot of sinew in there as well. Live and learn. There was a small brisket in the bunch, too, so it will be interesting to see how lean that is.

 

[Todd NC]

I bought some local grass fed ribeyes and a tri-tip several years ago. They were way too lean for my taste.
I bought some heritage pork ribs awhile back and was disappointed at the lack of meat.

I find your pork ribs experience interesting. My wife's cousin is raising cows and heritage pigs and we're planning to buy a 1/2 pig this Fall when they take them to slaughter. I'll be curious to see what the cuts are like.

 

[Jeff Boudman]

I find your pork ribs experience interesting. My wife's cousin is raising cows and heritage pigs and we're planning to buy a 1/2 pig this Fall when they take them to slaughter. I'll be curious to see what the cuts are like.

You’ll probably do much better. It wasn’t the pork - it was the butcher.

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

There was a small brisket in the bunch, too, so it will be interesting to see how lean that is.

Assuming you go low and slow, it should fare much better than the steaks. Good luck Jeff.

 

[Rich G]

Too bad that didn't turn out better, Todd! Not all grass fed cows are created equal. If the rest of the beef seems to be similar, maybe time to break out the grinder, mix in some pork back fat, and have some great burgers or sausages!

I've been pretty happy with the grass fed beef that my butcher gets. Then again, it's hard to eat it with just one arm and one leg (if you catch my drift!) His heritage pork is awesome, too......plenty of good, white fat that has been bred out of supermarket pigs.

Hope the rest of your cow is a better experience!

R

 

[Todd NC]

Too bad that didn't turn out better, Todd! Not all grass fed cows are created equal. If the rest of the beef seems to be similar, maybe time to break out the grinder, mix in some pork back fat, and have some great burgers or sausages!

I've been pretty happy with the grass fed beef that my butcher gets. Then again, it's hard to eat it with just one arm and one leg (if you catch my drift!) His heritage pork is awesome, too......plenty of good, white fat that has been bred out of supermarket pigs.

Hope the rest of your cow is a better experience!

R

We'll see what the rest of it is like. 1/3 of it was already hamburger. We have a few more steaks and then the rest is a mixture of cube steak, a beef shank, flank steak, etc. Looking forward to that pig, though.

 

[Brad Olson]

Todd, if the pig's been allowed to roam free and eat what it wants I think you'll be plenty happy with the pork.

Do you know the breed that the beef came from? Based on your OP I did a little poking around on the web, and there's a lot of information about how the different breeds grow, store fat, etc. If the beef you bought was from a naturally lean animal that might be part of the reason you were disappointed.

I'd throw that shank in the freezer and save it for soup.

 

[Todd NC]

Todd, if the pig's been allowed to roam free and eat what it wants I think you'll be plenty happy with the pork.

Do you know the breed that the beef came from? Based on your OP I did a little poking around on the web, and there's a lot of information about how the different breeds grow, store fat, etc. If the beef you bought was from a naturally lean animal that might be part of the reason you were disappointed.

I'd throw that shank in the freezer and save it for soup.

I don't know the breed of cow, but that's a good point.

 

[CaseT]

A buddy used to raise cows and we’d always get a quarter of half. Grass feed up
Until the last three months then grain feed. Big difference from just grass fed. Last beef we got they feed with the spent grains from the Micro breweries here. It’s good stuff too.

 

[Todd NC]

A buddy used to raise cows and we’d always get a quarter of half. Grass feed up
Until the last three months then grain feed. Big difference from just grass fed. Last beef we got they feed with the spent grains from the Micro breweries here. It’s good stuff too.

I probably should've asked more questions about their cows and process. We didn't buy too big of a part, I wanted to do a trial first. In hindsight I'm glad I made that decision.

 

[Joe D - BBQ Joe]

I buy belted galloway grass fed - very rich in nutrients like CLA that just aren't as present in grain fed beef. But I don't cook it the same. For steaks like you have, I would cook them over indirect heat, much lower grill temp than I would a grain fed steak. I was told this by the farmer where I buy - not sure why it matters, but I find it does help.

 

[Todd NC]

I buy belted galloway grass fed - very rich in nutrients like CLA that just aren't as present in grain fed beef. But I don't cook it the same. For steaks like you have, I would cook them over indirect heat, much lower grill temp than I would a grain fed steak. I was told this by the farmer where I buy - not sure why it matters, but I find it does help.

I will try that next time.

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

The closest I've had was grass fed and grain finished. The grass fed gives it a mineral taste that some people don't like. My wife hates it, I like it, so I guess we aren't having that again. I did a reverse sear. I think reverse searing helps with a more tender final result which it looks like you did.